Conventional mixers are powered by electric motors or by internal combustion engines, usually small, petrol-driven motors driving the rotary mixing barrel through reduction gearing. Over the decades during which mixers of this kind have been commercially available, the design of the barrel support arrangements and the motor transmission arrangements have been refined with a view to reducing the weight but improving the robustness and efficiency, always with the intention of reducing the cost and increasing the value-for-money of the mixers, to the point where it is difficult to see what further savings can be made for any particular specification.
The present invention, however, makes possible substantial cost savings. Features of preferred arrangements facilitated by the invention give rise to further advantages. A preferred embodiment will be disclosed and the novel aspects of the present invention will be particularly identified and discussed herein.